Former walk-on Turman sees a common theme in current crop of NU walk-ons

Jake Archer, Omaha Skutt

RON POWELL, Journal Star

FRANCIS GARDLER, JOURNAL STAR FILE PHOTO

Lincoln Pius X running back Chris Cassidy stiff-arms Lincoln North Star's Garrett Isom (22) out of the way en route to a touchdown in August. Cassidy is among a group of walk-ons for new Nebraska coach Scott Frost.

CLARK GRELL
Lincoln Journal Star

Dec 20, 2017

If Jake Archer needs to find someone who knows what it takes to work up the ladder as a Nebraska walk-on, he doesn't have to venture too far down the hallways of Omaha Skutt High School.

Matt Turman, his high school football coach, has been there. The same Matt Turman who starred at Bishop Neumann and walked on at Nebraska, later started at No. 16 Kansas State and backed up Scott Frost in 1996.

"He's gone through the same thing," Archer said of his high school coach.

Archer, a Super-State first-team linebacker at Skutt, recently announced his intentions to walk on with the Huskers. He's the third SkyHawk to walk on in two years, joining Trent Hixson and Christian Banker, who recently completed their first seasons in the program.

"They all have a shot because they're not scared of putting in the hard work," Turman said. "As you walk on, you've got to work harder than guys with stars behind their names, just to get a shot."

Archer, who had 170 tackles and five sacks as a senior, had NCAA Division II offers, including Nebraska-Kearney and Emporia State. But his mind was made up when the Huskers offered a preferred walk-on spot, Turman said.

Now, Archer is part of a talented group of walk-ons who have been energized by Frost. The Husker coaching staff recently held a walk-on event and hosted about 40 in-state prospects. Lincoln Southwest's Collin Shefke, Lincoln Pius X's Chris Cassidy and O'Neill's Wyatt Liewar quickly jumped on board. Kearney Catholic's Matt Masker, Millard West's Brody Belt and Bellevue West's AJ Forbes were among those that followed. Southwest's Justin Holm and Cameron Pieper were already committed before the coaching change.

Archer said the Huskers offered him a walk-on spot the night of the event. He told Frost that night, "that I was 100 percent sure this is where I wanted to be."

"Every since I was a kid ... I always dreamed that I would be running onto the football field (at Memorial Stadium)," Archer said.

"It looks to me, (Scott's) putting together a group of kids that you're not trying to hit a home run the first year," Turman said. "He's getting guys that he knows are going to work hard, are going to buy in to what he does and buy in to the system. Three, four years down the line, they're going to be contributors.

"I think he has a large group of those kids."

During a teleconference Wednesday, Frost said the response from walk-ons and potential walk-ons has been great. He added the Huskers will probably offer more walk-on spots soon.

"It's going to be a process," Frost said. "A walk-on or scholarship player, they're going to get the same opportunity. I fully believe there are kids that are hopefully going to walk on next fall, and after a year or two in our weight room, and on the practice field, are going to develop into good players and starters for us.

"That's an important part of what made Nebraska great and it's an important part of what will make Nebraska great again."

Turman said he already sees a potential impact player in Nebraska's program when he sees Archer.

"His biggest attribute, he's just fast," Turman said of the 6-foot-1, 205-pounder. "There won't be a whole lot of linebackers that will be flat-out faster than he is."